This comes from someone on Twitter whose tweet I somehow lost because I’m bad at the Internet (sorry!), and the short answer is that Fox doesn’t know yet. He was asked about it on Monday and on Wednesday, and it doesn’t seem that he’s made any progress in his decision as the week has progressed.

At this point, he said, he’s still “day-to-day” as to whether he’ll make it down to the sidelines, and he also pointed out that he’s coached half his career from a box; when he was a defensive coordinator for all those years, that’s where he was stationed.

As to why Fox wouldn’t just take the field, the reasons are myriad. There’s the worry that he might get run into or hit, concerns about over-exertion — you name it, it’s a potential concern. Not major, just potential, and a month after heart surgery, potential concerns carry some weight. For now, then, it’ll be a game of wait-and-see, and no matter where Fox is on Sunday, the Broncos are just grateful he’ll be in the building.

This question comes from @Broncfan07 on Twitter, and my short answer is no, I don’t think there are too many instances when having John Fox on the sidelines would dramatically change the way the Broncos adjust in the second half. That’s no knock on Fox — he’s a very good coach — but Jack Del Rio has years and years of NFL experience as a head coach, and he’s perfectly capable of making decisions in the clutch. NFL opponents are good, as are their coaches, and yes, teams do get figured out as games progress.

Welcome to “ohmygosh, what’s wrong with Peyton?!” week. It’s been a blast. The long and short of it: his ankle is a little gimpy, but he’s playing on Sunday. Here’s a look back:

Monday: After returning from San Diego, the Broncos held their normal Monday availability. Jack Del Rio discussed Sunday’s game, and exactly zero offensive players who actually play showed up in the locker room.

San Diego — After 195 consecutive games over 11 1/2 seasons as head coach, John Fox is going to miss one.

The Broncos’ head coach will be watching his team play the San Diego Chargers today from his home in Charlotte, N.C. The game will be televised on CBS with Jim Nantz and Phil Simms calling the game.

Fox, 58, underwent aortic valve replacement surgery Monday in Charlotte. He was released from the hospital late Friday morning. He has several appointments this week with his doctors in Charlotte, N.C. but he’s hoping to fly to Denver later this week. Doctors will first have to clear him for that trip.

Fox is also hoping he can attend the Broncos-Kansas City Chiefs game in a non-working capacity next Sunday night at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Again, doctors will have to give their permission.

As part of his coaching contract, Fox has a luxury suite at Sports Authority Field for his family and guests. He hopes to be in that box for the Broncos-Chiefs game but at that moment that’s a lot of hoping.

After skipping last week, which was supposed to be an uneventful bye, this week in review will go all the way back to Nov. 2, when Broncos coach John Fox was hospitalized with a heart problem.

Saturday: Mid-afternoon, news broke that Fox had experienced light-headedness while golfing in Charlotte and was taken to a local hospital. As the evening unfolded, more details became available, first that he was undergoing tests and was hopeful to be released and eventually that he’d have to undergo aortic valve replacement surgery. It also became known that Fox was aware of the condition and had hoped to postpone the necessary procedure until after the season.

When Broncos interim coach Jack Del Rio addressed the Denver media on Monday, he mentioned that a call to Cardinals coach Bruce Arians was on his to-do list. Arizona hired Arians this year after he spent 2012 serving as the Colts’ interim coach during Chuck Pagano’s bout with leukemia. While filling in for Pagano, Arians led the Colts and their rookie quarterback, Andrew Luck, to a playoff berth.

“Denver Broncos Head Coach John Fox underwent successful aortic valve replacement surgery this morning at Carolinas HealthCare System’s Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute in Charlotte.
“He is currently in the hospital’s post-operative critical care unit, where his recovery is being monitored by doctors.”

And from Robin Fox, John’s wife:

“Our family greatly appreciates the overwhelming support and well-wishes we’ve received for John. Along with his medical team, we will take great care of him so he can fully recover and get back to coaching the Broncos as soon as possible.”

This question comes from Chris Hatfield via email, and it’s a great one on a day like today and something I’ve thought a lot about.

First off, no, it’s not a HIPAA violation. The coaches and players are providing the information themselves through their teams, and it would only be a HIPAA violation if the physicians were talking to the media without authorization from players and coaches. (For that matter, Fox’s physicians haven’t even spoken publicly.)

After yesterday’s news of John Fox’s hospitalization and plans to undergo aortic valve replacement surgery, the Broncos will be without their coach for the forseeable future. It’s hardly the first time a coach has suffered from some kind of heart trouble, though. Here’s a look back at some other coaches who’ve suffered everything from false alarms and minor scares to major heart attacks during games. It’s certainly not an exhaustive list — nor is it uplifting — but it puts Fox’s ailment in some historical context.

Bo Schembechler, University of Michigan football, 1969, age 40: Schembechler suffered a heart attack the day before the Wolverines played in the 1970 Rose Bowl. He also had quadruple bypass surgery in 1976, another heart attack in 1987, and yet another quadruple bypass surgery after his second heart attack.

Don McCafferty, Detroit Lions, 1974, age 53: McCafferty suffered a heart attack while cutting his grass in July 1974 and passed away after being transported to a nearby hospital.

Lou Saban, University of Miami, 1977, age 55: Saban had double bypass surgery in the summer of 1977 but recovered by the time Miami’s season started.

We at The Denver Post don’t have any photos of players vacationing, so I thought this of Orlando Franklin might be the next best thing. (Tim Rasmussen, The Denver Post)

This comes from @tlcat06 on Twitter, and the answer varies. One thing is for certain, though: these guys were ready to get out the door on Wednesday afternoon.

Some players go on actual vacations, to the beach and such. Others go to visit family or back to their colleges. Montee Ball said he’s going to go see his family and head up to Wisconsin. The team is playing in Iowa this week, but he’ll catch up with it when it returns to Madison, he said.

Coach John Fox also gives his coaching staff some time off, and he said he thinks most of his coaches use the days to spend time with their families. Fox also offered up some words about what he hopes his players will do with their time away.

“Make good decisions,” Fox said. “I don’t want to read about you unless you win the lottery. It doesn’t need to be Spring Break 2005 or Hangover IV. I think our guys understand this is a time to get rested mentally and physically and come back ready to work.”

Broncos defensive end Robert Ayers almost gets a block on a Chiefs field goal last season. (John Leyba, The Denver Post)

If you’d said two months ago that a 7-1 record halfway though the season wouldn’t be enough to earn the Broncos the lead in the AFC West, people might have thought you were crazy. Still, here we are, with the 8-0 Chiefs leading the division and the 4-3 Chargers plenty in the mix. Even the Raiders, at 3-4, are just a game below .500.

Through Week 8, the AFC West has a combined 22-8 record. That’s good for a .733 winning percentage. Last season, the division combined for just 26 wins on the season and a .406 winning percentage. In addition, the Chiefs, this year’s last undefeated team, were the worst in the entire NFL.Read more…

How much longer will Wesley Woodyard be out? The question comes via Twitter from @KitMannRocks, and unfortunately, I can’t see the future. Honestly, if you’d asked this question a week ago, I would have told you all to expect Woodyard to start in Indinapolis. He told the media several times last week that he’d be playing, and there was no reason to doubt him, but he was, as you all know, inactive against the Colts.

On Monday when asked about Woodyard’s status, coach John Fox said that the linebacker was “very close,” and he was limited in Wednesday’s practice.

On Wednesday, Woodyard also spoke about missing Sunday’s game.

“It was extremely hard,” he said. “But I had to make a decision—what was going to put myself and my teammates in a better position down the road—and that was to sit out. It was tough sitting on the sidelines and not being able to help my teammates out there on the field.”

So back to the question: If I were a betting woman, I’d say you should expect to see Woodyard in the lineup on Sunday against the Redskins. That said, there might not be full confirmation until Sunday.

John Fox, Peyton Manning and the Broncos will get a new practice squad member this week. (John Leyba/The Denver Post)

The Broncos announced Tuesday that they signed Chad Bumphis, a rookie receiver out of Mississippi State, to their practice squad. The team promoted Tavarres King from the practice squad to the 53-man roster last week and never filled his spot. (King was waived Saturday morning to make room for Von Miller.)

Bumphis went undrafted in 2013 and was signed by the Dolphins in May. He played well in the preseason but was waived.

The 5-foot-10, 202-pound receiver was a three-year starter at Mississippi State, where he played in 51 total games, logging 159 receptions for 2,273 yards and 24 touchdowns.

Champ Bailey, the greatest cornerback in Broncos history, returns as a veteran leader.

The Broncos had another MRI exam on the left foot Pro Bowl cornerback Champ Bailey re-injured in the first half Sunday night in a 39-33 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.

The initial results did not reveal any more serious damage, although sometimes that’s worse than finding something. Because something on the bottom of his left foot is causing pain.

Broncos coach John Fox called Bailey “week to week” and mentioned the bye week after the the game Sunday against Champ’s former Washington Redskins and former coach Mike Shanahan. Expect Bailey to again rest his foot until the Broncos play game 9 at San Diego on Nov. 10.

The left foot injury caused Bailey to miss the first five games this season.

Nicki Jhabvala is a Broncos beat writer for The Denver Post. She was previously the digital news editor for sports. Before arriving in Denver, she spent five years at Sports Illustrated working primarily as its online NBA editor. She also spent two years as a home page editor at the New York Times.